Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Why I Like Left 4 Dead

In the past few years zombies have exploded both literally
and metaphorically on the screens of gamers through a large number of title
releases. Zombies have always had a significant presence in video games but now
more than ever I feel as if developers are abusing their popularity in
contemporary culture to crank out more and more zombie based games. I think
that the appeal in zombies for developers is that they allow for a wide variety
of story lines that center around the conception of these menaces despite how
trite they seem. Also in games that emphasize a mass number of antagonists,
zombies fit the bill perfectly as not much is needed in developing dead bodies
coming at you. This is why I respect Left 4 Dead as a zombie game as it doesn’t
try to be anything other than what it is. A balls out zombie shooter with
minimal plot line that emphasizes gameplay over all else. The levels are fairly
detailed with the settings being typically city streets are farmstead and the
ammo is plentiful with the typical tropes of zombie weaponry, shotgun, assault
rifle etc. To add some extra sauce to the mix the game has a variety of zombie
types which mix up the strategy of the players and keeps the gameplay fresh.
This game is very much a ludist’s game as it takes place in a closed world
linear environment and the rules and goals are clear: you shoot zombies you get
to the extraction point. Hours of fun with friends and no big commitments to plot or storyline.